Virgil Abloh knows what the kids want. Rebellious, youthful and indifferent—the Off-White designer presented a Spring ’19 collection Wednesday that was designed with Gen Z in mind.
On Instagram, Abloh said the show was inspired by “thugs and skaters hanging with the rich and elite” in parks during “those crazy summer NYC nights when its just as sticky hot at midnight as it was at noon.”
In keeping with Off-White’s back-to-basics ethos, denim and bargain basement tees served as a foundation for the men’s collection. Jeans fell into four categories: raver, utilitarian, embellished and purposefully frumpy.
Denim was slightly skewed with jean jackets buttoned on a diagonal and pant seams twisting around the leg. Cargo pockets were placed on a diagonal, too. A jean vest mimicked the style of a fisherman vest, tricked out with multiple, bulbous pockets.
Dad jeans were updated with a ring zipper pulls. The bottoms were complemented by oversized, screen printed T-shirts featuring ’90s brat, Bart Simpson. Cartoon-like yellow, red and blue, perhaps inspired by Bart’s color palette, were the only notable pops of color in the collection.
Sharpie-like graffiti decorated relaxed fit jeans with split hems. Light wash jeans coated in clear sequins, and a coordinating anorak, glistened with a plastic-like surface. Fancy floral printed jeans were brought back down to earth by a shoe lace that doubled as a makeshift belt.
The Off-White collection is a precursor to what is expected to be Abloh’s more mature line for Louis Vuitton. He will debut his first collection as the French fashion house’s artistic director for men’s wear on Thursday.
